


A Flap of Butterfly's Wings

by Anon4Us



Series: Change of Current [1]
Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Free! Kink Meme, Gen, Iwatobi!Rin, Samezuka!Rei
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-10
Updated: 2013-10-10
Packaged: 2017-12-28 23:44:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/998323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anon4Us/pseuds/Anon4Us
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>That is when it snapped. The trophy in Rei’s hand broke as he snapped the little swimmer and ribbon off of the main body. No one spoke as he allowed them to drop down on to the ground with a loud clank.</p>
<p>“Think of that as what is going to happen when we meet again in competition,” said Rei before he walked off into the darkness he appeared from. </p>
<p>In which Ryugazaki Rei is Nagisa's childhood friend but leaved for Australia, but came back when they started high school.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Flap of Butterfly's Wings

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a fill for a prompt over at the Free! Kink Meme
> 
>  
> 
> _Basically, what if Rei was part of their childhood friends circle from the start? How would his interactions with everyone differ, his position in the group, his insecurites, etc? His relationship and attitude towards Rin? His relationship with Nagisa? (they live nearby like Makoto and Haruka do so I'd assume they'd be close)._
> 
>  
> 
> _Or, alternatively, what if Rei was their childhood friend and he was the one to leave for Australia, not Rin? How differently from Rin he would handle his reunion with his friends, his attitude to the desire of being number 1; would he have a rival and if so, who would it be? (Haru? Rin?) His relationship with Nitori and the rest of the Samezuka team?_
> 
>  
> 
> _I'd be really interested in seeing your view on the subject, anons! Can be gen but Reigisa is preferred._
> 
>  
> 
> _Bonus:_  
>  A reference to this: Remember the 'embarrassing story' flashback scene for Rei, where he forgot his clothes (I think it were his swimming trunks but not 100% sure)and the teacher brought them back for him in front of everyone? Bonus if the rest of the gang was there with him when it happened and one of them, taking pity on Rei, pretends its theirs in front of the others and later discreetly gives them back.

* * *

_He recognized the boy as being the new kid in his class. Never had he seen a kid shake like he did when the teacher made him stand in the front of the class at the start of the term. No doubt the new kid would be nervous to start at new school for a new term. How he stood then was like how he stood there right now on the side of the pool. Only this time, he tried to hide behind some high school boy with the same hair who was talking to Coach Sasabe._   
  
_“Rei-kun!” Nagisa called and rushed over._   
  
_The red glasses boy stared at the blonde that head at him before he hid behind the teenager who Nagisa assumed to be his big brother._   
  
_“Is this a friend of your’s?”_   
  
_Rei shook his head no but Coach Sasabe merely laughed as Nagisa moved closer and was almost face to face with the young boy, “Nagisa-kun here is one of our newest members but he is a fast learner,” the coach explained._   
  
_“Me and Rei-kun are in the same class at school,” said Nagisa._   
  
_“Rei and I…” mumbled the other boy._   
  
_His brother merely laughed as he took to pried carefully his little brother off and try to step away, “You will have fun, lil bro. I have a feeling you and Nagisa will be great friends. I got have to go to cram school so I will pick you up afterwards.”_   
  
_“But Onii-chan…” whimpered Rei as he tried to reach out for his brother but Nagisa grabbed his hand instead._   
  
_“Come on, let’s get you into your swim suit,” the blonde said cheerfully, “I want you to meet everyone!”_   
  
_Nagisa merely dragged the other boy along, who protest all the way to the changing room._   
  
_It didn’t take long for the two to become fast friends. Nagisa found Rei at school and pretty much inserted himself into the lonely boy’s life by a sheer force of will. It took a few days, Rei mostly cried out and tried to run away but Nagisa was on his tail, but he broke down Rei and by the next week when they went to swim club, they were friends._   
  
_And Nagisa was happy to cause a smile on to Rei’s face._

* * *

  
  
Never had he been so excited for school before. It was his first day of high school and not only did it mean a new stage, but it also met that he would get to see old friends. It had been so long since he had seen them and he couldn’t wait to reunited with them all again. Would they remember him? Would they still want to swim? Would they want to be his friend?  
  
He wasn’t one to second guess himself as he dashed up the stairs, the smile ready to burst off of his face.  
  
“Mako-chan! Haru-chan! Rin-chan!” he cried.  
  
The three heads of the upperclassmen turned around at the sound of their names being called. Nagisa smiled as he saw them. While they did grow since being little kids, he still could tell it was them. Mako-chan was way taller, Rin-chan’s teeth were all shark-like and Haru-chan…still looked the same.  
  
They were all pretty much in shock to see him there, but there was no pushing back. Nagisa merely smiled along with the rest of them as they travelled upstairs to the roof. It felt so similar, to be back with the old gang again…though, they weren’t all here now.  
  
“It’s good to see you again, Nagisa,” said Rin as they sat down to eat.  
  
“Yeah! It was such a pain we couldn’t go to the same middle school and when the swim club shut down, I didn’t think I would be able to swim with you again,” he explained, “But we can again? The school as a swim club, right?”  
  
Rin snorted, Makoto chuckled while Haruka seem more focus on his lunch which appeared to be some kind of fish.  
  
“We are pretty much it,” said Makoto with a nervous chuckle, “There were a couple third years, but they graduated.”  
  
“But there is still one, right!” declared Nagisa, “Awesome, we can still be in the relay and it will be just like old times.”

* * *

  
_“Come on, Rei-kun,”_   
  
_He dragged his new friend over to the pool as they watched the older boys swim in the lays. There was a new boy in the swim club who Nagisa had seen talk to Tachibana-kun and Nanase-kun. His name was Matsuoka Rin and like them, he too had a girly name. He was even supposed to be almost as good as Nanase-kun._   
  
_“I don’t know, Nagisa-kun... He might like us bothering him,” said Rei, nervous._   
  
_Nagisa stuck his tongue out at his best friend and just let go of his hand, “I am going to talk to him if you are too scared.”_   
  
_“I’m not scared!”_   
  
_“I’m going over.”_   
  
_Rei stood there on the side as Nagisa walked over to the pool and stared down as Matsuoka finished up with what he was doing. He could pick up the conversation as he stood there, watched his friend…his only friend happily chat up the older boy like it was nothing. He only wished he could be like that too. Maybe one da-_   
  
_“Rei-kun! He is good at the batta! And everything! He doesn’t sink like you do!”_   
  
_“Nagisa-kun!” shouted Rei, his face heated up as the blonde shouted that piece of information out for everyone to hear and dashed over to cover the other’s mouth before he spilled more. It was embarrassing enough that he seem to sink to the bottom of pool when he tried any other stork but the butterfly._   
  
_“You sink?” asked Matsuoka, which cause Rei’s face to become redder._   
  
_“This is my best friend, Ryugazaki Rei. He started swimming like me in January. He is the best at the batta like I’m at bura. I’m Hazuki Nagisa! Hey do you think you can look at my batta cause I want to be good like Rei-kun and you!” explained Nagisa as he pushed away from Rei and lean closer to Matsuoka-san with large eyes._   
  
_The redhead looked a bit nervous while the bluehead was a tad hurt with being pushed off but easily forgot it. After all, Nagisa did called him his best friend. That met something and it warmed his heart._

* * *

 

“You know what this means?”  
  
“What do you mean, Nagisa?” asked Makoto.  
  
It was great; it was as if they weren’t never apart. Nagisa smiled as they were once more a team and he couldn’t wait until they were able to swim together again. It would be like old times and he wished that the final member of their team would be here to enjoy it with him.  
  
“Come on! You guys know that the old swim club is going to be torn down soon. We have to go and dig it up.”  
  
A second past before they all realize what their young friend had met with by that statement as they exchange looks with one another.  
  
“I hadn’t thought about it in years,” mumbled Rin, leaned back against the schools’ roof to stared up at the sky, “You think it is still there?”  
  
“I would think so? I mean, we were the only ones that knew where it was and I don’t think anyone would actually want to dig it up beside us.”  
  
“It’s prefect, what a better way to reunite the team than to dig up a symbol of grandest moment!” declared Nagisa, “Please, please!”  
  
“Sounds too much trouble,” mumbled Haruka.  
  
“You don’t mean that, Haru-chan!”  
  
“Don’t call me that.”  
  
“I think it’s a fun idea,” said Makoto.  
  
“You would,” snorted Rin but smiled soon enough, “But sounds like a good idea. Beside, we should still see if our photo is up too…maybe grab my Pops’ too.”  
  
“See! Come on Haru-chan! Join us!”  
  
“You’re too loud,” mumbled Haruka.  
  
“The pool will still be there…” said Makoto.  
  
“……”

* * *

 

_When Nagisa wanted to start run with the three older boys, Rei tagged along caused that is what friends do. He was a better runner than Nagisa and was able to keep up a lot better than him. But to keep up with the older boys didn’t matter with him than Nagisa, so when his best friend lagged behind, than he did as well._   
  
_But when they were about to do their times and Nagisa said if he was the fastest, could he be part of their relay team, Rei was hurt._   
  
_Once the three boys left, Rei walked to the beaming Nagisa as he set out to do what he promise. He came up with the fastest time in the breaststroke and he was proud. Why shouldn’t he be proud of his best friend’s feats? This was the boy that hadn’t left his side since he came to his school, come over to his house to do homework and spend a number of nights with sleepovers. He shouldn’t worry be Nagisa’ obsession in the older boys. They were pretty nice and each of them were the best swimmers in their club._   
  
_Tachibana-san was the nicest boy, alway with a kind word and smile on his face. Nanase-san though was the best swimmer. He could watch the black hair boy as he moved through the water. Nagisa-kun was right when he called Nanase-san a dolphin with how he moved through the water. It was beautiful._   
  
_But he looked up to Matsuoka-san most of all. Not only was he helpful with tips on how to improve his butterfly stroke, but he had saved him from embarrassment._   
  
_It had been a stupid mistake when he left the swim club one day. He had left a pair of his undergarments behind. When they came in the next day, Coach Sasabe found them and showed them to everyone. Rei felt his blood pressure drop as he saw his undergarments exposed to the whole swim club. Everyone around him, chuckle, spoke and poke, started to laugh and he couldn’t do a thing. If he claimed them as his own as they were, he would be known as the underwear boy as well as the boy than could only swim the one stroke._   
  
_But Matsuoka-san stood up and claimed them as his own. The club calmed down as he collected them. Rei blinked in surprise as why would the older boy do such a thing. No one laugh or said anything as they all had too much respect for Matsuoka-san. He was one of the best swimmers in their club and who wouldn’t look up to him and his skill._   
  
_Once everyone was gone, Matsuoka-san came over to him and handed them over. When Rei asked why, he smiled and said that he knew they were his and didn’t want everyone to hassle him about it._   
  
_‘They already bug you with the whole sinking issue, don’t want you to deal with anything else.’_   
  
_Rei almost burst into tears from the beauty of Matsuoka-san’s kindness but settle with a hug that would make Nagisa proud._   
  
_Maybe, one day, he would be able to swim like both Matsuoka-san and Nanase-san, with the prefect form and being free through the water._   
  
_But he wanted to swim with Nagisa too…_   
  
_“You…you are going to swim with them?”_   
  
_“Yes! Isn’t that great news, Rei-kun!” said Nagisa with cheer._   
  
_“I guess…but…”_   
  
_“But what? Aren’t you happy I get to swim with them in the relay?”_   
  
_Rei stared down at Nagisa and looked right into those large eyes of his. His face warmed before he adjusted his glasses. How could he say he wanted to swim with Nagisa? How could he hurt his best friend like that? If he wanted to swim with them, shouldn’t he be supportive?_   
  
_“Y-Yes, it is very good news. You will all swim beautifully together” he shuddered. At Nagisa’s smile, he smiled as well, “I’m happy for you.”_

* * *

  
“Whoa…everything is falling apart,” gasped Nagisa as the four of them stared up at the old swim club. The building for sure had seen better days. Nearly all the windows were broken, the paint was faded and the whole place as this air of something not natural about it.  
  
“No surprises,” said Rin.  
  
“Heh….maybe we should just go home,” said Makoto, with a nervous chuckle as he moved closer behind Haruka.  
  
“Are you scared?” said Rin, a dangerous grin played across his face, “I hear the whole place is haunted, that you can hear cries and screams coming from it in the middle of the night.”  
  
“Rin….”   
  
“Stop that.”  
  
“Haru, you are just no fun.”  
  
“Don’t worry, I have prepare for this,” said Nagisa. He happily smiled as he pulled out a handkerchief filled with something white, “Purifying salt to keep all the bad spirits away.”  
  
Nagisa started to circle around them, tossed the salt around as he thought that it would be able to protect them from any ghosts that could be inside. Makoto and Rin cried out in surprise while Haruka stood there impassive until he reach over to a bit on his shoulder and taste what he had on his finger.  
  
“Sugar…”  
  
“Heh…it’s the thought that counts…”

* * *

  
  
_“What…”_   
  
_Nagisa felt like he was going to cry. Rei already in tears as he stood there with his gym bag and swim club jacket on. They had finished for the day and the others were already gone, everyone was gone except for the two of them. Rei had said he wanted to talk to Nagisa alone. They had stay behind just because of that. Now, Nagisa wished he had told Rei to wait until they were home._   
  
_“I-I-I’m moving, Nagisa-kun,” sobbed Rei as he said it once again, “Otou-san got another job transfer so we have to move.”_   
  
_“When? Where?” said Nagisa as he felt panic rise in his small little body. Who would hang with out at school? At lunch? Who could he have sleepovers with and flee to his house to escape his sister? Maybe Rei wouldn’t be moving far or too soon…_   
  
_“After the swimming tournament,” said Rei through the tears, “We…We are going to Australia.”_   
  
_Now the tears flowed for both of them as they grabbed each other in a hug and sob. Nagisa didn’t want to lose his friend and Rei didn’t want to loses the first real friend he ever had. There was nothing either could do about it as it was out of their hands. Wherever Rei’s father needed to be, he would bring the family along and Nagisa couldn’t stop it._   
  
_“I’ll win you that trophy! I am going to swim for you!” declared Nagisa as he held tight to Rei as he was scared of letting the other go, “You might not swim with us, but you watch me and I am going to swim the best I ever had!”_

* * *

  
  
“I can’t believe our photo is still up here,” said Makoto as they stared at their whole relay photo.  
  
The five young faces stared back with large smiles on their faces. Makoto had on his nervous smile while Haruka turned his face away from the camera. Rin was hung off the stoneface boy with the trophy they had rightly earned with Nagisa hung off of him while he drag Rei into the picture. The glasses boy had on his swim club jacket and while he didn’t swim with them, he had been part of the team to Nagisa. He timed them, had all sorts of information and tips on their stroke. While the boy could only swim the one stroke, he knew as much as the sport as the rest of them, maybe even more.  
  
Rin had grabbed a hold of his Pops’ old relay photo before he joined the rest of the boys. He stared down and tapped Rei’s face, “Nagisa, what happened to him?”  
  
“Um…I don’t know…” mumbled Nagisa. Makoto never hear the blonde speak in such a tone before since they reunited. It was so soft spoken and not like him, “I tried to send him letters, but Rei-chan never wrote back.”  
  
“Well, that’s too bad,” said Rin with a shrug, “But at least the ones that did the hard work are here to dig it up.”  
  
“Rin-chan! How can you say that?” shouted Nagisa, sounded quite hurt from his tone, “Rei-chan was part of the team.”  
  
“He could only swim the one stroke and you just dragged him along.”  
  
“Glad to know that’s how you feel.”  
  
They jumped to attention at the unfamiliar voice behind them in the dark, abandon swim club building. They turned around to see a shadowy figure in doorway with a gleam of light seem to reflect off of his glasses. It stepped forward to reveal a tall teenager in a black track suit with the jacket zipped up all the way. He had neatly cut blue hair and dark purple eyes hidden behind a pair of red frame glasses. Three of the four didn’t recognise him, but one did.  
  
“…Rei-chan…” gasped Nagisa.  
  
Makoto, Rin and Haruka paused at the newly arrived teen before the glance down at their old photo to back at the teen. It dawn of them soon enough that Nagisa was right.  
  
“Rei!” they called out in surprise.  
  
The newly reveal Rei merely shook his head as he pushed his glasses up, “I see you still know my name, even though I was just a simple hanger-on.”  
  
Rin bit his tongue, a bit of regret for his words. He would had said nothing had it not be Nagisa as the blonde rush forward and hugged the boy for dear life.  
  
“Rei-chan! I missed you!” said Nagisa, never thought he could smile like this and pretty much declared in his mind that this was the best day ever, “Why didn’t you call? Why didn’t you write back? Where are you going to school? How was Australia?”  
  
“Nagisa-san, get off of me.”  
  
That…that was a bit of a surprise as he was shoved off. The ground met with his behind as Nagisa landed hard, didn’t think he would be pushed away. Looking up at Rei, he met with cold unfeeling eyes that he didn’t think was possible.  
  
“Hey, you can’t do that,” said Rin as he stood up while Makoto helped Nagisa back up with Haruka’s aid.  
  
“He jumped on me,” said Rei, his tone of voice reflected in his eyes as unfeeling and emotionless, “Beside, I’m not here to renew old friendships.”  
  
“But…why?” asked Makoto. Nagisa wanted to ask the same thing and many more questions. He couldn’t’ find his voice as he stared at his old friend. What could have happen to Rei to cause this? He remembered the young boy being shy and nervous, but he warmed up fast enough. This Rei…he was nothing like the one Nagisa remembered.  
  
“I heard the old swim club was close and wanted to see things before they torn it down,” explained Rei with a wave of his hand, “And…there is something I wanted to see.”  
  
All eyes were on him as he lifted up the item they original had come for. Their trophy was in his hand and it was like new. It hadn’t change at all over the years it had been buried in the ground around the swim club over the four years. Not a single bit of rust or dirt on it as the ribbon flapped in the air.  
  
“I wanted to see if this was as impressive as I remember it from all those years ago.”  
  
“Hey, that is ours!” declared Rin, his face and voice clearly showing his anger.  
  
“Right…yours,” said Rei, tossing the trophy back and forth in his hand, “After all, I never was part of the team. Just someone you felt sorry for. The little boy that could only swim one way no matter what.”  
  
A sad smile came across his face before he harden up again, both hands, “It is heart breaking to learn what people you thought were your friends really think of you. But I am not that little boy anymore, that one trick pony.”  
  
“Rei-chan, what?” chocked Nagisa.  
  
That is when it snapped. The trophy in Rei’s hand broke as he snapped the little swimmer and ribbon off of the main body. No one spoke as he allowed them to drop down on to the ground with a loud clank.  
  
“Think of that as what is going to happen when we meet again in competition,” said Rei before he walked off into the darkness he appeared from.   
  
Nagisa didn’t move from the spot, didn’t say anything but could feel as if it wasn’t just the trophy that was broken right now.


End file.
